The present invention relates to temporary moorings for boats and other small watercraft. More particularly, the present invention relates to a marine outhaul apparatus and method which is portable and which allows the user, while visiting any shore which does not have docking facilities, both to moor and to retrieve the craft remotely from the shore.
Access to shores of both lake and tidal waters which do not have a docking facility (undocked shores) has long been a problem for visiting boaters. While it is possible to land a boat at most shores, current and wave action bringing repeated contact between the boat and the shore can damage any boat, unless the boat can be pulled safely out of the water and on to the shore. This can only be done with very small boats like tenders and portable inflatable dinghies, on reasonably smooth shores. In tidal waters, tide changes require frequent adjustment of a craft""s position on the shore. Some shores can only be visited at certain tides. There are many rocky undocked lake and tidal shores where it is not practical or safe to pull up any small boat.
For repeated visits to the same undocked shore, marine outhauls have traditionally been used as mooring devices. Such devices consist of an endless loop of line passing through pulley type devices, one of which is secured to an anchor on shore and another to an anchor in the water. When the water craft is attached to the loop (called the boat activation line) it can be moved from shore to the water anchor, or the reverse, by a remote user on shore pulling the boat activation line through the pulleys in the appropriate direction. Most outhauls are permanent or semi-permanent installations at one location. In tidal waters, various types of floating marine growth and floating debris can foul the device over time, jamming the pulley attached to the sea anchor.
Recreational boaters do not set up outhauls for temporary one-time use. Such outhauls are impractical because of 1) the time required to establish the two anchors and their pulleys and then to thread 300 to 400 feet of line through these pulleys, 2) the high risk of the line tangling in the set up, disassembly and storage, and 3) the problem of what to do with any line in the coil not needed for the particular application. Since one doesn""t know how much line will be required for a particular application until arriving, the conventional outhaul user has to have a large coil of rope and hope it is long enough, but not too long. This makes it more cumbersome to assemble and store the line after use and to prevent tangles of the line in the process. These difficulties and the attendant frustrations outweigh the benefits of greatly increased access to previously unavailable shores which such an outhaul would provide.
The portable marine outhaul described here is designed to provide practical temporary safe mooring and remote retrieval for any watercraft able to land at any shore.
There are many patents that disclose, or relate to, a wide variety of marine outhauls. U.S. Pat. No. 4,760,812 by Stanley et al. relates to an outhaul used to secure a sail to the end of a boom of a wind surfing sailing craft. U.S. Pat. No. 4,750,430 by Morton and Scharte relates to an outhaul used between large ships for the transfer of cargo. U.S. Pat. No. 5,431,123 by Johnson and U.S. Pat. No. 5,806,453 by Cook relate to land anchoring devices for small boats. U.S. Pat. No. 5,398,634 by Eagan relates to a device used to anchor a boat safely at a dock, using a tubular device to contain and protect the line. U.S. Pat. No. 4,640,212 by Brandt relates to a special type of elasticized rope which can be used for the mooring of small water craft. U.S. Pat. No. 4,721,054 by Kobayashi relates to a device which makes it easier to pull up a small water craft anchor. U.S. Pat. No. 5,501,166 by Ziober relates to a watercraft mooring apparatus where the craft sits on a cradle for ease of pulling up on shore. U.S. Pat. No. 5,062,376 by Tremblay relates to a device used to anchor a small craft from bow to stern simultaneously with coordinated anchors, controlled by cables wound on a drum inside the boat. U.S. Pat. No. 5,460,112 by Travioli relates to an apparatus for pulling a small water craft upon a rocky shore using a supporting frame.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,168,823 to Sheppard, Jr. discloses a transportable outhaul device for recreational use which focuses on prevention of fouling of a pulley apparatus in the water at the sea-anchor end of the outhaul. It eliminates pulleys in favor of a hoop through which an xe2x80x9cactivationxe2x80x9d line travels. While this outhaul may in fact perform well, particularly as a permanent or semi-permanent installation at one location over weeks and months when floating marine growth and debris can foul the line at the sea anchor end, it nevertheless fails to simultaneously meet a variety of often conflicting design considerations for a portable marine outhaul for use by recreational boaters.
The ""823 outhaul is xe2x80x9ctransportablexe2x80x9d, but it is not practically portable for temporary use for the reasons mentioned above. The ""823 patent describes using xe2x85x9cxe2x80x3 line, which has a breaking strength far beyond the strength requirements for temporary use. However, this diameter line size does provide ease of handling and reduces the likelihood of tangling during set up, use and dismantling. Further, the 200 feet length described in the ""823 patent is too short for many portable outhaul applications, yet it is quite bulky for portable use. The length is not adjustable for multiple locations. With outhauls, one size does not fit all.
It is therefore a primary object of the present invention to provide a marine outhaul apparatus and method that is portable and can be used at any required distance. This is generally 150 to 200 feet, requiring 300 to 400 feet of line, but longer applications are possible using this technology should a situation require them.
Another object of the invention is to provide a portable marine outhaul that allows onsite assembly of the outhaul and storage of unused line in a way which does not interfere with the operation of the outhaul.
Another object of the invention is to provide a portable marine outhaul that is readily disassembled and conveniently stored after use.
Still another object is to provide a portable marine outhaul with the foregoing advantages that controls tangle of the outhaul line and is comparatively easy to use.
A further object of the invention is to provide a portable marine outhaul that is versatile, allowing visits ranging from a few minutes to a few days to any undocked shore of almost any type, ranging from rocky lake shores to very gradually sloped tidal shores.
Another object is to provide a portable marine outhaul with the foregoing advantages that can be used to moor at sea or between land anchor points.
Yet another object is to provide a portable marine outhaul that can be manufactured at a favorable cost using standard materials and components.
This invention provides a marine outhaul having two pulleys that are each attached to an anchor, a reel, and a loop, of haul line journalled through the pulleys, establishing two runs. In one form, each end of the haul line is secured at opposite ends of the reel, wound in the same direction to wind or unwind both runs simultaneously with rotation of said reel in one direction or another.
In one form, the invention provides a portable marine outhaul for a vessel that can be set at a variable distance from an anchor point on land. One anchor is then a land anchor and the other is a sea anchor. When using a sea anchor, a line is secured to a float. The reel and haul line wound on the reel are constructed to wind and unwind the haul line as two mutually spaced runs of generally equal length. A pair of pulleys carry the haul line, one of the pulleys being releasably secured to a sea anchor and a float, and a second of the pulleys being releasably secured to the land anchor. A mechanical arrangement, for example a cleat mounted on the reel container, secures the haul line when unwound from said reel to a predetermined length. The invention includes a mechanical arrangement for securing the haul line to the vessel, e.g., a cleat mounted on the hull of the vessel.
Drawing on one of the runs causes the haul line and the attached vessel to travel between the pulleys and their associated anchors in a first direction. Drawing on the other one of the runs causes the haul line and the attached vessel to travel in the opposite direction.
In other forms, the outhaul can be set between two sea anchors or two land anchors to provide a mooring, while also allowing some degree of change of location on the water, e.g. to a different fishing or photographic site.
Viewed as a method, the invention provides a process for mooring a floating marine vessel at a variable distance between two anchor points. In a preferred form, the process, broadly stated, includes setting a sea anchor; attaching a float to the anchor line; securing a reeled, double-run haul line to the sea anchor line; unreeling two runs of the haul line in coordination with a movement of the vessel from the sea anchor to the land; detachably securing the haul line to the land anchor; securing the haul line to a cleat on the container at the length unreeled during the movement and the detachable securing; fixing the haul line to the vessel; and pulling on one run of the haul, line thereby to move the vessel from land toward the sea anchor. In a dual sea anchor form, once one sea anchor is set, the movement is to a second sea anchor. In a dual land anchor form, one land anchor is set, then the boat is moored to a second land anchor while unwinding the haul line from the reel.